Diarmuid Gavin: Pick the perfect cherry blossom fit for your garden

Pink, white, big or small, there are many hybrids of this stunning tree, with good foliage beyond spring

Prunus 'Accolade' Cherry Blossom

Diarmuid Gavin

April is peak cherry blossom season and there is much to admire at the moment. The Great White Cherry (Tai Haku) is one of the first and finest to bloom and always stops me in my tracks. For a few weeks, the tree is laden with large, pure white flowers. It’s quite large by cherry standards so more suitable for larger gardens. Another favourite is Prunus yedoensis, which has a beautiful silhouette as the branches spread horizontally and are now covered in pale pink and white flowers.

Then there’s the deservedly popular Kanzan, which has been grown in the suburbs for decades, the sugar candy, double pink flowers forming the classic backdrop for holy communion portraits and later on the rosy petals will carpet the ground.